Nets force Game 7 with 95-92 win over Bulls

CHICAGO — Andray Blatche walked off the hardwood and into a tunnel. As he followed his teammates toward the locker room, the Nets’ forward smiled and reached up to give a fan a high-five.

The Nets’ Brook Lopez, right, who had 17 points, blocking a shot by the Bulls’ Marco Belinelli during Game 6.

The last time the Nets embarked on the same journey — off the United Center court, to the airport, Brooklyn bound — it was an unhappy one.

“That one Saturday was depressing,” Deron Williams said of the flight home after a devastating Game 4 loss. “Not much talking, just kind of felt a little sorry for ourselves.

“But we turned it around, and that’s all that matters.”

Yes, the Nets are headed back to Brooklyn. They’ve got more basketball to play.The Nets outlasted the depleted Bulls on Thursday night, 95-92 in Game 6 of this first-round playoff series. The decisive Game 7 — Brooklyn’s first in any major sport since 1956 — is set for Saturday night (8 p.m.) at Barclays Center.

It wasn’t pretty. It wasn’t convincing. But it was enough. The Nets have battled all the way back from the 3-1 hole they dug themselves into on Saturday, when they imploded in the final minutes of regulation in Game 4 and made that depressing journey home.

“We haven’t turned the corner, but we’re looking a lot better than we looked when we left here. I’m really proud of our guys.”

Two-hundred and 10 NBA teams have fallen behind 3-1 in a best-of-seven playoff series, which is the predicament the Nets were in after they imploded late in Game 4. Now, according to Elias Sports, the Nets have become the 29th team in league history to push the series to a Game 7 after facing that deficit.

If they win, the Nets would become only the ninth team in league history to overcome a 3-1 series deficit.

But getting this far was made incredibly difficult by a Bulls team severely hampered by injury and illness. Starters Kirk Hinrich (calf), Luol Deng (illness) were out. Meanwhile, guard Nate Robinson and forward Taj Gibson were battling illness.

Yet, somehow the Bulls had three chances to tie it in the final two minutes — but Robinson missed two shots in the paint, and Marco Belinelli’s would-be game-tying three-pointer in the final 10 seconds did not fall.

“It was kind of a bloodbath game,” Carlesimo said. “Fortunately, we came out on top. Now, we can take a deep breath. Until the plane takes off.”

Yes, somehow the Nets have lived to fight another day. Saturday will bring the first Game 7 in Brooklyn since Oct. 10, 1956 when the Yankees beat the Dodgers in Game 7 of the World Series at Ebbets Field.

The Nets forced this Game 7 with a total team effort.

Deron Williams, Brook Lopez and Joe Johnson had 17 points each to lead the Nets. It was the Nets’ first win at United Center this season after going 0-4.

But Blatche, who finished with 10 points as he battled a right calf strain, made the biggest contributions down the stretch. He scored the team’s final five points and hit two critical free throws that kept the Nets out in front when the Bulls made their final push.

“I thought he was really big in a lot of ways,” Carlesimo said. “I put him in there, and he stepped up and hit some big free throws.”

CHICAGO — Andray Blatche walked off the hardwood and into a tunnel. As he followed his teammates toward the locker room, the Nets’ forward smiled and reached up to give a fan a high-five.

The last time the Nets embarked on the same journey — off the United Center court, to the airport, Brooklyn bound — it was an unhappy one.

“That one Saturday was depressing,” Deron Williams said of the flight home after a devastating Game 4 loss. “Not much talking, just kind of felt a little sorry for ourselves.

“But we turned it around, and that’s all that matters.”

Yes, the Nets are headed back to Brooklyn. They’ve got more basketball to play.The Nets outlasted the depleted Bulls on Thursday night, 95-92 in Game 6 of this first-round playoff series. The decisive Game 7 — Brooklyn’s first in any major sport since 1956 — is set for Saturday night (8 p.m.) at Barclays Center.

It wasn’t pretty. It wasn’t convincing. But it was enough. The Nets have battled all the way back from the 3-1 hole they dug themselves into on Saturday, when they imploded in the final minutes of regulation in Game 4 and made that depressing journey home.

“We haven’t turned the corner, but we’re looking a lot better than we looked when we left here. I’m really proud of our guys.”

Two-hundred and 10 NBA teams have fallen behind 3-1 in a best-of-seven playoff series, which is the predicament the Nets were in after they imploded late in Game 4. Now, according to Elias Sports, the Nets have become the 29th team in league history to push the series to a Game 7 after facing that deficit.

If they win, the Nets would become only the ninth team in league history to overcome a 3-1 series deficit.

But getting this far was made incredibly difficult by a Bulls team severely hampered by injury and illness. Starters Kirk Hinrich (calf), Luol Deng (illness) were out. Meanwhile, guard Nate Robinson and forward Taj Gibson were battling illness.

Yet, somehow the Bulls had three chances to tie it in the final two minutes — but Robinson missed two shots in the paint, and Marco Belinelli’s would-be game-tying three-pointer in the final 10 seconds did not fall.

“It was kind of a bloodbath game,” Carlesimo said. “Fortunately, we came out on top. Now, we can take a deep breath. Until the plane takes off.”

Yes, somehow the Nets have lived to fight another day. Saturday will bring the first Game 7 in Brooklyn since Oct. 10, 1956 when the Yankees beat the Dodgers in Game 7 of the World Series at Ebbets Field.

The Nets forced this Game 7 with a total team effort.

Deron Williams, Brook Lopez and Joe Johnson had 17 points each to lead the Nets. It was the Nets’ first win at United Center this season after going 0-4.

But Blatche, who finished with 10 points as he battled a right calf strain, made the biggest contributions down the stretch. He scored the team’s final five points and hit two critical free throws that kept the Nets out in front when the Bulls made their final push.

“I thought he was really big in a lot of ways,” Carlesimo said. “I put him in there, and he stepped up and hit some big free throws.”